Heriot-Watt Postgraduate Centre
Location: Heriot-Watt University Campus, Edinburgh
Client: Heriot-Watt University
Value: £8 million
Status: Complete
Hypostyle were appointed by Heriot-Watt University to develop a new Postgraduate Centre in Edinburgh by means of a two-stage selection process following our winning design proposal. It was the first major project of the twenty-first century for the Heriot-Watt Edinburgh campus and became the first purpose-built facility of its kind in the United Kingdom.
Our design proposal included a new 150-seat lecture theatre, two additional lecture theatres, seminar rooms, dedicated study and social areas, offices for staff and a café for all users of the building. The concept defines three distinct zones within the Postgraduate Centre to group facilities with similar lighting, structural and ventilation requirements.
The new 150-seat lecture theatre became the primary feature of the design and is celebrated with an unconventional oval-shape floor plan in a prominent location on the site. The curved theatre is externally clad with a blue metal cladding to further celebrate the blue university colour of Heriot-Watt. It is an important visual aspect of our design that establishes a distinct identity for the Postgraduate Centre amongst the linear forms of neighbouring buildings within the university campus.
